-Welcome back to "Late Night."
We're here with Taylor swift.
And we were talking during the break.
Some very exciting collaborations that you are now
able to do because you're re-recording these songs --
Chris Stapleton, Ed Sheeran, Phoebe Bridgers.
Is that -- -Yeah.
[ Cheers and applause ] -It must be so nice to
have a wish list, and then reach out to these people.
-It really, really was. Essentially, there are songs
on this album that I've called "from the vault" tracks,
because in my mind, there's a metaphorical vault
of songs that I love that I've written --
I write a lot of songs for albums, and then I pare it down.
But these were songs that didn't make it on the album
because I wanted to save them for the next album.
And then, it turned out, the next album was, like,
a whole different thing, and so they get left behind.
And you always think back on these songs, and you're like,
"What would have happened? I wish people could hear this."
But it belongs in that moment in time.
So now that I get to go back and revisit my old work,
I've dug up those songs from the crypt they were in,
and I have, like -- I've reached out to artists
that I love and said, "Do you want to sing this with me?"
You know, Phoebe Bridgers is one of my favorite artists
in the world. I just think she's --
Like, if she sings it, I will listen to it.
[ Laughter ] It's --
I just love her voice, and then I also love
that she's a very funny person. -Do these people believe it
when they get a phone call, saying, "Hi, it's Taylor Swift.
I want you to sing a song with me?"
-Well, I try not to cold call people.
-Right. [ Laughter ]
That's a good instinct, yeah. -It can go very bad.
-Sure. -But, you know, I do send, like,
a very long text that I've crafted over many days.
And I'll send the song, because I don't want them
to ever feel pressured to say yes to something
creatively if it doesn't gel with what they want to do.
So, with Phoebe, I reached out,
and I sent her this song called "Nothing New,"
which I wrote when I was 22. And it's really, really
special to me because it was the first time
I was not a shiny new artist.
I was on my fourth album, and I felt --
Like, I think this happens to a lot of artists,
where they have their breakthrough moment.
And then, the moment after that is really hard for them
because they're just not getting the same --
It's like the first time you walk into a room at a party
and everyone's like, "Oh, Kevin's here!"
When you have your breakthrough moment, like, "Kevin!"
And then, the next time, you walk in, they're like, "'Sup?"
-Yeah. [ Laughter ]
-And then, the third time you walk in, they're like,
"Um, so what do you want to do tomorrow?"
and they're just talking. And you're like,
"But I'm here, and you used to --"
So I was dealing with that moment in my life,
and so that song's really special to me.
And I sent it to Phoebe and said it would mean
the world to me if you would do this as a duet.
'Cause I really wanted another female artist
who I loved to sing it with me, because I think it has a very
female-artist perspective, that we go through that experience.
And her response was,
"I've been waiting for this text my entire life."
[ Laughter ]
It was like, "Yes!" -That's a very --
I'm sure she was waiting for that.
I think a lot of people are waiting and excited
for the fact that you have recorded --
There's a 10-minute version of a song --
[ Cheers and applause ]
I mean, I-I just want to say.
-That was a really nice reaction.
-I haven't heard a gasp like that...
-That was great. -...since I said,
"Now it's time for 'A Closer Look.'"
-That was very powerful. [ Laughter ]
-So, tell us about -- But this was --
So you've always had this version.
-Yes. This is the original thing that I wrote.
So, there's a song called "All Too Well"
that was never a single. [ Cheers and applause ]
You guys are really --
This is very nice, what you're doing out there.
[ Laughter ]
This song was never a single, it never had a video,
and somehow, the fans just turned it into
the song from this album.
And when I -- I used to get so sad
when I would sing it that I could barely, like,
get through the song. And then, over time, I realized
the fans were just, like, screaming the words back to me
so loudly that it made it a very joyful experience for me
to sing this song. And since --
It has been a joyful thing for me to sing.
I play it all the time in concert.
And it's just so fun to hear them scream the words.
So this song originally was --
It's a very long song, as it is,
but it was originally 10 minutes long.
And I just kept -- I was just like --
[ Laughter ] I couldn't stop.
But I was like, "Oh, you got to fit something on an album,
so that's unreasonable for it to be 10 minutes long."
And so I had to cut out certain verses and parts of the bridge
and lots of different things that I really loved.
Left some of my favorite lines on the cutting-room floor,
and I'm really happy that people get to hear them.
I'm so proud of this version of it.
I think this version is the version of the song
that was meant to be heard. [ Cheers and applause ]
-That is really thrilling. And then, on top of all that,
there's a short film that you wrote.
-Yeah. -That you directed.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Two fantastic young actors -- Dylan and Sadie,
who I believe -- I hope this is correct --
also huge fans of yours.
It must have been a big deal for them to do this.
-It was really wonderful
working with Sadie Sink and Dylan O'Brien.
They're just absolutely --
I'm just blown away by what they did in this short film.
I wrote this short film and wanted to direct it,
and the only two people that I imagined playing
the two characters -- it was Sadie and Dylan.
If Sadie --
She was the first one I went to.
And if Sadie had said no,
I don't think I would have made it.
I don't think I would've made the film.
I think I would've just been like,
"This is a sign," like, you know.
But she -- I do like working with friends,
or people who I think would be excited about working with me.
I don't really want to have to convince someone.
I'm not very interested in that at all.
If somebody -- I've never made a short film before.
I've directed some music videos. But I kinda needed to reach out
to people who were like -- would maybe believe
that I would be capable of it, and Sadie just --
Sadie got it immediately. Dylan was like, "Yep."
And I watch everything he's in. I'm a huge fan of his.
And both of them, they just -- they went out,
and they just left it all on the field there in that short film.
They really just acted their asses off.
-Well, it's terrific. And I can only imagine
what the next couple of days are gonna be like for your fans.
You have done them -- -I hope good.
I hope good -- [ Cheers and applause ]
-I feel very confidant about that.
It's so lovely to see you again. -You're lovely.
-Thanks for being here. You guys, that's Taylor Swift.
[ Cheers and applause ]
"Red (Taylor's Version)" is out tomorrow.